A House of Cards

Sometimes I think that this whole world that has been built up around me is made of plastic. And what I mean by "sometimes" is just about every day. I look around at all I see, how people live, what they have, what they lack, how they act, what they say, what they value, what they love. It all seems so fake. so superficial. a house made of cards. empty. When I really get to thinking about it, I will usually laugh at the absurdity of it all, not because I think I am better than anybody else, but because I just don't understand it. It can't be real.

This world is so big, and this life so short, that thinking about the mockery we have made of it all makes me want to grow hair just so I can pull it all out (maybe I'll do that.) What is this life!?

Jesus said, "I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full" or "in abundance." He told the woman at the well, "Indeed, the water I give them will become in them a spring of water welling up to eternal life." And one of my favorite quotes: "The glory of God is man fully alive" by Saint Irenaeus. Put all these together and you have the life I want to live. It is far from a house built of cards.

There is no room for compromise between the true world that God created and the world that we pretend to live in. The latter actually is no world at all, but it would be a lie to say grown ups don't play make-believe too. There is no room for compromise between the true lives God has created us for and the lives others tell us to live, or that we might prefer to live. We live in a world of compromise, but God hates compromise. "Every word of God is pure, and any addition to them will make you a liar." Let what is true be true, and what is false be false. Let what is good be good and what is evil be evil! There is no room for compromise when it comes to following God. "He who does not give up everything he has cannot be my disciple." It is all or nothing. An abundant life or a house of cards.

And then the fear kicks in... another invention of the ultimate make-believer, Satan, who tries to keep us enslaved. What if... fill in the blank. "God has never forsaken those who seek Him."

Security does not exist in nature, nor do the children of men as a whole experience it. Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than exposure. Life is either a daring adventure or nothing. -Helen Keller

"So many people live within unhappy circumstances and yet will not take the initiative to change their situation because they are conditioned to a life of security, conformity, and conservatism, all of which may appear to give one peace of mind, but in reality nothing is more damaging to the adventurous spirit within a man than a secure future." - Chris McCandless (Into the Wild) 

"Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent." To know the true God is to love Him; and to know Him better is to love Him all the more. "If you love me, keep my commands... Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love them and show myself to them.” (Jesus)

"Follow Me" - Jesus

The Poor Will Be Glad

When you give a luncheon or dinner, do not invite your friends, your brothers or sisters, your relatives, or your rich neighbors; if you do, they may invite you back and so you will be repaid. But when you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous. JESUS (Luke 14:12-14)

Last week I set out for an adventure.. just a little one. I decided that I was going to hitchhike to Atlanta to work with Day Laborers. I apologize if you are reading this and are mad that I hid this from you, or that I hitched when you would have offered me a ride, but I hope you will understand that I had to complete the journey. God opened my eyes to a lot.

On the trip, I slept in a gas station/truck-stop with a bunch of truckers, walked a combined 20 miles (hello calves and hamstrings), 6 of those miles on the expressway before being told by a cop that apparently it's illegal (who knew!), stuck that thumb up nice and proud in the rain, witnessed two grown men break down crying when I prayed for them, got a ride from these guys from Royston, another ride from this really nice lady named Habeba, stood on the side of the road with Hispanic guys across the street from Home depot for 2 hours (la mayoria no habla ingles), did slave labor with Pedro all day (Pedro is about 40 and from Ecuador, where he sends money back to his wife and kids), and finished it off with a nice 10 mile hike to my grandparents house. All in all it was terrible.

I am a stupid 22 year old kid who has a truck in my driveway and the opportunity to get a steady job.  I have always had a bed to sleep in, and food on the table. I don't know if it was simply my ignorance and naivety that kept me sound a sleep at night, or perhaps just my sheer apathy. But I feel God constantly reminding me lately, "I LOVE the poor!!"

Our world is so efficient and sophisticated that it is so easy to go your whole day without noticing the poor. Who goes in gas stations anymore when you can just swipe your card and wait in your car? Who waits in line to have your groceries scanned when you can just go to the "You-Scan" line? Ummm I think I would rather wait an extra ten minutes for this double cheeseburger in drive-through than go inside. Who takes public transportation when I can sit in my own car and be by myself? We get home, turn on that tivo to catch up on all the shows we missed that day, put an inspirational bible verse on our facebook status, and pray before we go to sleep at night that God would continue blessing our families and keeping us safe and healthy.

In our world, the poor are forgotten. But in the Bible:

Has not God chosen those who are poor in the eyes of the world to be rich in faith and to inherit the kingdom he promised those who love him? James 2:5

Blessed are you who are poor,
   for yours is the kingdom of God.  

Blessed are you who hunger now,
   for you will be satisfied.
Blessed are you who weep now,
   for you will laugh.

JESUS (Luke 6:20-21)

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Lately God has been burning in me a passion to help the poor. Not just buying them a burger, but inviting them into my house for a meal, hanging out with them, praying with them, loving them. Because it is clear to me that God hears those who mourn, and those who are hungry. Jesus Himself was closely connected with the poor and He knew them by name.  Below is a quote that good ole Chapman (aka Chapstick) sent me...

At the end of life we will not be judged by how many diplomas we have received, how much money we have made, how many great things we have done. We will be judged by 'I was hungry and you gave me to eat, I was naked and you clothed me, I was homeless and you took me in.' Hungry not only for bread - but hungry for love. Naked not only for clothing - but naked for human dignity and respect. Homeless not only for want of a room of bricks - but homeless because of rejection.
- Mother Teresa 


“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. “Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’ “Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? ³⁸ When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?’ “The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me.’ “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you who are cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.’ “They also will answer, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or needing clothes or sick or in prison, and did not help you?’ “He will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did not do for one of the least of these, you did not do for me.’ “Then they will go away to eternal punishment, but the righteous to eternal life.”
 -JESUS (Matthew 25)